UPDATE 1-Beirut building collapse kills 24, more missing

BEIRUT Jan 16 (Reuters) - The death in toll from the
collapse of a Beirut building rose to 24 on Monday and Lebanese
officials said more than 10 people could still be under the
rubble nearly a full night and day after the disaster.

Rescuers worked in heavy rain to try to find survivors from
the ruins of the five-storey residential building in Beirut's
Ashrafiyeh district.

Many of those killed were foreign workers, including
Sudanese, Ethiopian, Egyptian and Filipino nationals. Twelve
other people were being treated in hospital, health ministry
officials said earlier on Monday.

It was not clear what had caused the disaster, which
occurred after days of heavy rain in the Lebanese capital.
Officials said the building was old.

Prime Minister Najib Mikati set up a team to investigate why
the building had collapsed and to ensure the safety of other
buildings in the city that could be prone to collapse.
(Writing by Dominic Evans; Editing by Alistair Lyon and Ben
Harding)